Scott Philip Brown (b. September 12, 1959) was a Republican member of the U.S. Senate from the state of Massachusetts. Brown was first elected to the Senate in 2010 and served until 2013. Brown ran for re-election in 2012 and lost to Democrat Elizabeth Warren in the November 6, 2012, general election.[1][2]

Biography

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Brown was born in 1959 in Kittery, ME, and attended public high school in Wakefield, MA. He earned his B.A. from Tufts University in 1981 and his J.D. from Boston College Law School in 1985. Brown has also worked as an attorney.[4]

Issues

Presidential preference

Fiscal Cliff

Brown voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89/8 vote on January 1, 2013.[7]

Lobbying position after leaving office

Brown was listed in March 2013 by USA Today as 1 of 16 former lawmakers who took on a lobbying related position after leaving office.[8] Sixteen of the 98 total lawmakers who have retired or were ousted by voters since January 2011 hold lobbying-related jobs.[8]USA Today looked at lawmakers who retired, resigned or lost their seats in the last Congress — along with the handful who left their posts during the first months of the new Congress.[8]

Despite rules in place to prevent the constant rotation of lawmakers into lobbying positions, many former lawmakers are entering into positions with either lobbying firms or trade associations.[8] Former House members are barred from lobbying their former colleagues for a year, and former senators are barred for two years.[8]

There are no restrictions, however, on providing behind-the-scenes advice to corporations and others seeking to shape federal legislation.[8] Ex-lawmakers can immediately lobby the executive branch and officials in state and local governments.[8] Many former lawmakers are taking advantage of this slight distinction, and are taking positions after their political careers end as consultants and strategists.[8]

2012

Brown ran for re-election in 2012.[11] He ran unopposed in the September 6 Republican primary. Brown lost to Elizabeth Warren (D) in the November 6, 2012 general election.

The University of Virginia's Center for Politics published an article called Sabato's Crystal Ball on March 22, 2012 detailing the 8 races in the Senate in 2012 that would decide the political fate of which party will end up with control in 2013.[12][12] The article noted that Brown had campaigning success in Massachusetts, and despite mixed polls, Brown’s "blue-collar appeal"[12] might be enough against his opponent, DemocratElizabeth Warren.[12]

On July 25, Politico reported that New Mayor Michael Bloomberg hosted a fundraiser for Brown at his Upper East Side townhouse. [13]

Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2010

On January 19, 2010, Brown won election to the United States Senate. He defeated Martha Coakley (D) and Joseph L. Kennedy (L) in the special election.[14]

Analysis

Congressional staff salaries

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Brown paid his congressional staff a total of $2,554,189 in 2011. He ranks 15th on the list of the highest paid Republican Senatorial Staff Salaries and he ranks 51st overall of the lowest paid Senatorial Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, Massachusetts ranks 12th in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.[18]

Net worth

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Brown's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $835,106 and $2,250,082. That averages to $1,542,594, which is lower than the average net worth of Republican Senators in 2010 of $7,054,258.[19]

Political Analysis

Each year, National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted, as compared to other members, in the previous year. More information about the analysis process can be found on the vote ratings page.

2012

According to the data released in 2013, Brown was ranked the 45th most conservative senator during 2012.[20]

2011

According to the data released in 2012, Scott Brown was ranked the 45th most conservative senator during 2011.[21]

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Scott + Brown + Massachusetts + Senate

All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.

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Personal

Brown lives in Wrentham, MA, with his wife, Gail. The couple has two daughters.[22]